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Copyright Infringement Suit Against Producers of Unauthorized Star Trek Film

Represented Paramount Pictures Corporation and CBS Studios Inc. in connection with one of the only lawsuits involving a fan film production that has resulted in a federal court ruling. Loeb represented the client in a copyright infringement suit against the producers of a $1.4 million crowdfunded, unauthorized Star Trek film titled “Star Trek: Axanar.” U.S. District Judge Gary Klausner denied defendant Axanar’s motion for summary judgment, finding that the fair use doctrine did not apply to protect the Defendant’s unauthorized derivative work. The Court held that the Axanar film was not “transformative,” that Axanar was a “commercial” use of Plaintiff’s intellectual property, and that Defendant Alec Peters directly profited from Axanar. The Court also ruled that Axanar was substantially similar to the Plaintiffs’ Star Trek works, and shortly after the issuance of Judge Klausner’s ruling, the matter was settled.